Tesla postpones Semi truck unveiling but says prototype is 'complete'

After postponing the official unveiling of its truck Tesla Semi, the electric car maker confirmed that the first prototype of its big rig is 'complete'.

Musk recently tweeted that Tesla is delaying the launch of its Semi truck in order to concentrate its resources on boosting Model 3 production volumes as well as to increase battery deliveries to hurricane-affected Puerto Rico and other areas. The official unveiling was initially scheduled for 26 October, but will now be held on 16 November.

However, given the company's record of missed deadlines in the past, particularly in the recent case of the Model 3, where only 260 cars have been produced since July, Tesla has given a statement to clarify that its truck program is on track.

According to a report in Electrek, the electric car maker wrote to the guests invited to the Tesla Semi unveiling, saying, "The first Tesla Truck prototype is completed, but we're going to push the unveiling event to Nov. 16 so we can devote resources to fixing Model 3 bottlenecks and increasing battery production for Puerto Rico and other affected areas."

Back in April, Tesla announced that it has been working on an electric big rig, and since then, Musk has been giving away small tidbits about what is to come.

Along with a teaser image, which appears a lot like the one which surfaced a few days back, Musk has also referred to the vehicle as 'unreal' and a 'beast'.

In fact, building on all that hype, Musk tweeted recently that the Tesla Semi's "specs are better than anything I've seen reported so far". He added that the work the engineering and design teams have done on it "is aces" but "other needs are greater right now".

There's no word on the hauling ability or range of the upcoming truck, but Reuters reported in August that the big rig could have a range of 200-300 miles.

In another report, Reuters also hinted that Tesla's efforts could be towards developing an autonomous semi, which would move in "platoons", or convoy formation while following a lead vehicle. However, these reports have not been officially confirmed by the electric car maker.